Bayern Munich: Three things to watch at Signal Iduna Park
By Daniel Garza
Three things to watch as Bayern Munich face Borussia Dortmund in first league Der Klassiker of the season.
The first Der Klassiker of the 2020/21 Bundesliga season will be contested on Saturday as Bayern Munich travels to Signal Iduna Park to take on their rivals in a must-watch fixture. Both clubs are level on points at the top of the Bundesliga table entering this match.
It will be the second time they have met during the current campaign as Bayern defeated Borussia Dortmund in the DFL Supercup in September. Here are three things to watch in this fixture.
Lewandowski vs. Haaland
Two of Europe’s best strikers will feature in this match. Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski has been a lethal striker so far this season with 10 goals in the Bundesliga and Erling Braut Haaland has five goals. Lewandowski is currently the best striker in Europe while Haaland is very much an up and coming star.
Haaland did not score against Bayern last season in his lone appearance against them in May. He did register a goal and an assist in September in the Supercup and played a key role in keeping the match close. Bayern’s backline will certainly be tested by the Norwegian striker. They struggled to contain Andrej Kramaric earlier this season and will want to avoid a repeat performance.
When Lewandowski faces his former club he is likely to score. He has scored six goals in his last four Bundesliga appearances against Dortmund. With a strong start to the current campaign, he is likely to play a factor in the final result on Saturday. There’s an opportunity here to widen the gap in the race for the Torjägerkanone to contenders like Haaland.
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Battle for the top spot
Bayern and Dortmund are level on points in the Bundesliga table. They both have 15 points and lead thrid place, RB Leipzig, by two points. A victory would certainly help either club’s path to a Bundesliga title and help create a gap between each other. Although it is still very early in the season, this result could prove to be crucial in the latter stages of the season if it remains a close race for the title. The winner in this game could get a psychological edge for the rest of the campaign. Bayern managed to do that last season. In Flick’s first Bundesliga game, they clinched a 4-0 win against Dortmund and never looked back, cruising to a memorable treble.
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The best offense against the best defense
Dortmund has only allowed two goals in six matches so far. This is a very impressive record and they have conceded the fewest goals in the Bundesliga. Their opponents will be looking to put a dent in their goal differential as they enter this fixture with 24 goals scored which leads the league. Bayern has been by far the best offensive club in the Bundesliga and they will now be faced with the task of defeating the best defensive club in the league.